New microscopy may identify best sperm cells

More than 10% of American women aged 15-44 struggle to conceive or maintain full-term pregnancies, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Assisted reproductive technology (ART), through which eggs are fertilized with sperm in a lab and then returned to a woman's uterus, is often the last resort for reproductively- challenged couples. But the physical, emotional, and financial toll they exact is high because the success rates of ART treatments are low -- only 20-30%, according to the CDC.